Unit 1: Computer Systems
'Introduction' LOs/?: #'Define what a computer system is;' # Know the fundamental hardware components that make up a computer’s hardware and the role of each; # Know the difference between an operating system and an application program; # Name and describe each component inside the Input-Process-Output (IPOS) Cycle; #'Name and describe examples of computer system.' According to WordNet , a computer system is defined as, "A system of one or more computers and associated software with common storage." The above definition explicitly named two components: hardware and software, sharing a common storage, as what constitutes a computer system. @@@ Lots of examples. We use a computer system for our banking, retails, health, travels, education ... basically anything that require some sort of computing. It could consist of a single computer, or an array of networked computers. It may require a single or a multitude of software. A computer system may even appear in a different form than your traditional concept of one (inside your water heater!). The key word here is "common storage", i.e., the ability to store data, enabling information exchange between hardware and software. Let us start with learning the fundamental hardware components inside a standard desktop computer. Click here . (Activity 1). *Computer software Tba (Activity 2). *IPOS Cycle Tba (Activity 3). A game for matching computer hardware to their IPOS classes. *Examples of Computer systems. Tba (Activity 4). 'Advances in Computing Hardware & Software' LOs: #'Know what all the highlighted terms in bold in the text mean;' #'State the effect of computer technology on some common products.' Wearable Computer 'is the next big thing in computing hardware. It is defined as miniature electronic devices that are worn by the bearer under, with or on top of clothing (Mann, 1996). Examples are aplenty. We have all heard of Google Glass , a project by Google Inc., utimately aimed to replace handheld smartphones. These wearable devices are designed for a variety of uses. Please read this summarising article ('Activity 5) on wearable devices by Prof. Steve Mann of the University of Toronto . He is regarded by many as the father of wearable computing, focusing his research on vision augmenting devices. Or we can go to the extreme by implanting an actual computer inside our body! Prof. Kevin Warwick of Reading University did just that by surgically inserting implants into his forearm! The implanted chip functions as a radio transponder broadcasting his medical record, VISA details et cetera. In the next stage of his transformation, he surgically attached microelectrode array to the median nerve fibres of his left arm to measure nerve signals, allowing him to control devices in a Jedi-like manner (i.e., remotely). Watch his fascinating TED talk (and Jedi impersonation) here (Activity 6). Embedded System '''Tba.' '''Artificial Intelligence '''Tba. 'Computers as Transparent Helpers' '''LOs:' #'Define what the term "Computers as Transparent Helpers" means' #'List out scenarios requiring computers as transparent helpers' This idea of having a computer to make decision (not all!) for us is attractive since the human race is not known for preferring repetitive and mundane tasks. Computers are making decisions for us i. in tasks that we sort of know how they work (but too lazy to execute them ourselves), e.g., parking a car , ii. in tasks that are too difficult to execute for an average person, e.g., Electronic Stability Control , and iii) in tasks that we do not have a clue how the process works, e.g., Ji et al.'s Real-Time Nonintrusive Monitoring and Prediction of Driver Fatigue , so we let a computer to discover the best (i.e., optimal) decision, based on hidden patterns gleaned from the observed data. As transparent helpers, computers are designed to be context aware, i.e., the user does not need to provide inputs explicitly. Instead, a decision is made by the computer based on a series of passive observations via the use of sensors. For example, to park a car, the sensors would establish the spatial position of the car and the targeted parking space. The sensors also detect obstacles that lie on the computed path. Being context-aware is closely related to the ultimate vision of ubiquitous computing, "The most profound technologies are those that disappear. They weave themselves into the fabric of everyday life until they are indistinguishable from it." M. Weiser (1991). Transparent here refers to the computer disappearing - not in the physical sense, but from a psychological perspective. Let us look at a video detailing some scenarios requiring computer to be a transparent helper. 'References' 1. Mann, Steve (2013). Wearable Computing. In: Soegaard, Mads and Dam, Rikke Friis (eds.), The Encyclopedia of Human-Computer Interaction, 2nd Ed.. Aarhus, Denmark: The Interaction Design Foundation. Available online at http://www.interaction-design.org/encyclopedia/wearable_computing.html